And here's the next chapter guys! Just in time for Thanksgiving! If you are American at least!
Hope you enjoy it!
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Audino was taking a short walk with Eevee. The little fox seemed terrified of everything, even the trees. She thought of something to say to calm her.
"So... I've noticed…. your fur is gray…. are you a shiny Pokemon?"
Eevee nodded, blushing and looking down. "Uh…. yeah. I don't like talking about it."
"I noticed that as well. Why do you wish to hide it?" It was Umbreon who spoke, and she gave Eevee a sharp look.
"EEEEEH!" Eevee screamed, startled. She stumbled, tripping over a rock and falling over the edge of the hill, where she splashed into the water below.
Audino gasped, leaning over. "Oh no! Somebody save her!"
"Here I come to save the day!"
Frogadier dove in the water out of nowhere, splashing after Eevee. He emerged, the now very wet fox in his hands.
Audino and Umbreon ran after them. "Are you two alright?"
"F-fine thanks," Eevee's blush was even more prominent. Umbreon moved quickly, grabbing her a towel. Frogadier calmly shook off water droplets.
"That was really cool Frogadier!" Audino chirped. "Now that I think about it, you've always been quick to help others."
Frogadier rubbed his head sheepishly. "Well….I've always wanted to be a knight in shining armor or a superhero or something like that. So I do a lot of community service projects and was in the Peace Corps for a while."
Audino was beaming. "That is amazing! You know, we're having a blood donation soon, and it would be wonderful if you took part!"
"I DEFINITELY would!"
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Umbreon rolled her eyes. "And that's two people who WON'T be winning this season. I feel a bit sorry, but nice people just aren't cut out for this type of game."
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Umbreon stalked over to a quivering Eevee. "I'm sorry I startled you."
"Oh! It-it's alright! I get sc-scared easily."
"I noticed. You need to learn to calm down," She said impassively.
Eevee admired Umbreon. She was so strong and calm, she wished she could be just like-wait a minute.
"You were once an Eevee, weren't you?" Umbreon rolled her eyes.
"Yes, that's how evolution works."
"W-well, I was wondering if y-you could help me with my confidence issues. You probably would understand me the most, right?"
"When I was an Eevee I was rebellious, had an attitude a mile wide, and hated natural light. There is nothing that will make us understand each other."
"Oh," said Eevee sadly.
Umbreon gave her a surprisingly warm smile. "Alright, I'll take you under my wing, but no more freaking out, okay?"
Eevee hopped up and down happily. "Okay!"
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"So… what's your favorite color?" Munchlax asked Plusle before mentally smacking himself. The two Pokemon were at the cafeteria, waiting for Hariyama to start serving "breakfast."
"Er…that's a pretty difficult question. There are a lot of really cool colors, but I'm going to go with yellow, 'cause it's the color of lightning. How about you?"
"White! Because that's the color of my stomach" Munchlax said, trying to crack a joke. Munchlax then banged his head on the table realizing how awkward that sounded. Plusle giggled.
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"Yeah…I've never been too good with girls," Munchlax said as he let out a huge sigh. Arceus…. she probably thinks I'm a huge dork by now."
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Meanwhile, both Bidoof and Shuckle were both watching Slowking, amazed.
"So Shellder, when did you uh...gain consciousness?" Shuckle asked awkwardly.
The shell on top of Slowking's head winked. "Well...I've always been a part of Slowking, his untapped potential. Once he evolved, I gained a physical form!"
Slowking on the other hand, was snoozing. Occasionally he'd mutter something quiet under his breath.
Bidoof whistled. "Wowie! Ya think if I evolved I could get a Shellder on m' head too?"
Shuckle looked downcast. "I wish I could evolve."
"Well maybe ya can! I reckon you just need to put yourself to th' limit, and you'll have a Shellder on your head in no time!"
"Ugh I put myself on the limit just by moving to get here. This shell is SO heavy…."
Bidoof raised an eyebrow. "Hey wait a minute. I've been draggin that wagon of yours for th' entire competition. You haven't really done anythin'."
Parasect jumped out of nowhere, jumping on the table. "Interesting. Veeeeeery good point Bidoof. I have come to the conclusion that SHUCKLE is now on the chopping block."
"Woohoo! I'm off the hook!" Munchlax cheered, before Plusle gave him a disapproving look and he went silent immediately.
"Hold on!" Bidoof protested. "Tha's not what I….."
"Too bad!" Parasect said gleefully. "Shuckle, this is your last chance to do well in a challenge, or you will be eliminated."
Shuckle slammed his head on the
Gliscor was panicking as he glided around the island for the umpteenth time. He STILL couldn't find his brightpowder, and he had looked everywhere. Could someone have stolen it….?
He hissed suddenly, bumping into a tree. It did not go unnoticed by both Whimsicott and Zorua. The dark fox simply chuckled cruelly and walked off, but Whimsicott looked thoughtful.
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"Over these last few days, Gliscor has been having a LOT of these screwups," said Whimsicott uncertainly. "He used to be a hotshot flier, with incredible moves but….now he's had these clumsy accidents. Something DID happen at the arena last challenge, didn't it?"
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"ALL CAMPERS MEET AT THE BASE OF MT. VICTORY!"
"Wow….he named a mountain after himself? Egostatistical bastard," muttered Zorua. Minccino scoffed.
"Speaking of egostatistical…." Tepig nodded.
"That's right. Your as stuck up as-"
"Don't agree with me."
"Sheesh, sorry."
The two bickered all the way to the large base of a mountain, where the others had already arrived. Victini was waiting for them impatiently.
"This challenge is a DOOZY. The twenty nine of you need to partake in the great OBSTA-SKILL COURSE."
Silence.
Then Misdreavus was cackling at the top of her lungs. "AHAHAHA! SKILL! PRICELESS! AHAHA! Ahaha! ah ha! eh he! he? What's with you guys?"
Nearly everyone else was complaining about another physical challenge. Victini groaned, blowing a whistle.
"Alright settle down! The Obsta-skill course is cut up into five different parts. The first is a hurdle jump. Each camper has a set of hurdles to clear. If you fail to clear any of them, you will be immediately disqualified. Any questions?"
"Uh yeah…." Bulbasaur raised a vine. "How much can we pay to get out of this? Seriously, I have my dad on speed dial."
"About as much as my beautiful bod, so pretty much priceless. Now, get to the starting line, YA SLACKERS!"
The cast quickly ran, getting quickly into designated positions. Victini grinned at them. "We found the hurdles weren't "interesting enough," so we packed a few surprises. Have fun!"
Each camper ran forward, facing their respective hurdles. Some campers, like Ninjask and Misdreavus, simply flew over the hurdles easily, but others struggled. Charizard was far too big, and cursed as he tripped over one and thus ending his time in the challenge rather shortly. Donphan wasn't able to make it either, as well as Parasect, who couldn't even make the jump.
Lucario and Frogadier moved nimbly, easily jumping over their hurdles, but Lopunny moved with the skill of a gymnast, flipping over them with style and grace. Many of the other competitors were far slower, including Munchlax, Bulbasaur, and Slowking. Shuckle was in dead last.
Victini sighed. "This is a LOT more boring than I originally thought. Time to make this interesting!"
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"Ah geez!" Gliscor slapped a claw to his forehead. "If I had my brightpowder that wouldn't have even been a problem.
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"C'mon, Munchlax you can do it!" Plusle cheered as she bounded over a hurdle. Munchlax hopped after her, breathing heavily.
"This is hella hard. I wasn't built for a challenge like this!"
"Don't worry, you'll be fine as long as you focus."
Munchlax nodded. "Uh listen Plusle. This will come out of nowhere, but-,"
"Woohoo! This is bettern' that Rapidash rodeo!" Bidoof whooped, jumping in between them. Munchlax was caught off guard and stumbled.
He tripped, knocking over several hurdles in the process. He groaned as he fell flat on his face. Plusle sighed.
"Hey dad?" Bulbasaur held up a phone with his vine. "You know those anti gravitational rocket boots I got my last birthday? I think I might need them now, can you send the chopper?" Zorua made a disgusted sound.
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"He may not be a threat, but I can't STAND that rich brat." Zorua scowled. "If I can, I might take him out early, he's THAT annoying."
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Ninjask and Misdreavus both reached the other side extremely quickly. Carbink following after them. Despite their overwhelming advantage, Infernape was right behind them, whooping as he flipped over the last hurdle.
"Woohoo! Come on, guys! What's taking you so long! I could run faster in my sleep!"
Ninjask rolled his eyes. "I WISH you'd sleep."
Lopunny managed a triple flip over her last hurdle and landed in a roll. "Nailed it."
Lucario and Frogadier both landed at the same time, followed by Grovyle, who sniffed the air.
"Is something….burning?"
Her eyes widened as she stared at Braixen, who dusted herself off calmly and went over to join them. Behind her, nearly all of the hurdles were burning.
"S'up."
Grovyle's eyes began to twitch. She looked like she wanted to scream something, but Braixen was saved by Plusle hopping over, Bidoof right behind her.
Victini soon arrived, with a perplexed expression. "What the hell are you guys waiting here for? I didn't say you could take a break!"
"You didn't TELL us what the next part was!" Minccino screeched as she hopped over.
"Oh yeah. Whatever, you can figure it out." Victini replied, rolling his eyes and teleporting.
"Argh! I can't wait any longer!" Infernape shouted. He sprinted forward, starting the next portion of the challenge. But he froze when he saw cannons pointing at him from all directions. "Oh. Well it's not like they would actually-,"
BOOM!
Dodgeballs fired out of the cannons, aiming straight for the flame Pokemon. Infernape gulped as he moved nimbly from side to side, dodging them as best he could.
"Oh you've gotta be kidding me!" Minccino hissed. "This cannot be legal!"
"Meh. I don't think anyone would care either way. Victini could be murdering people live and he STILL wouldn't get attention." Ninjask chuckled.
"Well, I'd better get this over with," Ninjask muttered. He shot forward like a bullet, maneuvering through the dodgeballs with ease. Misdreavus tried to follow, but was beaned almost immediately.
Gliscor shuddered. "What the hell are we going to do?"
Frogadier gave him a strange look. "Uh...shouldn't YOU know that? You are a dodging menace."
"Oh uh...heh heh. Yeah! Let's go!" Gliscor boasted unconvincingly. "Well I guess I'll uh….start dodging, ha ha." He spread his wings and took to the air.
"Alright Gliscor, you got this. You don't need a brightpowder to dodge these big, high speed….cannon shots…..This was a terrible decision wasn't it?"
Gliscor hissed in pain as he was pelted by dodgeballs. Braixen sniggered as she ran past him. "Thanks for the shield, bat boy."
Plusle, Grovyle, and Minccino followed, dodging as many shots as they could. Lucario sighed as she and Lopunny ran forward as well, Frogadier and Misdreavus at the rear.
More and more Pokemon finished the hurdle section, quickly moving on. But sadly, not all of the Pokemon could make it. Tepig rolled around to dodge the shots easily, but Swampert's large frame got him hit on the shoulder. Bidoof was hit on the side, and Carbink was struck in the pace.
Eevee moved quickly, desperately dodging as many cannon shots as she could. Umbreon was behind her, dodging the balls in a far calmer and disciplined manner.
"Eevee," She murmured. "You need to calm down. Focus on your ears. They are sensitive enough to detect movement. Listen, don't look."
Eevee closed her eyes. A cannon swivelled, firing at her. Eevee's ears twitched as she rolled to the side, easily avoiding the shot.
Scrafty scoffed as a dodgeball whizzed past his shoulder. "Uh...Nightwing? As sweet as this little tutoring session is, I'd prefer we didn't assist the other team?"
Zorua gave Eevee a sharp look. "That's right! I don't want to see you fraternizing with the enemy! You'll spill ALL our secrets!"
"I-I wouldn't…." Eevee looked down, ashamed. Umbreon gave Zorua a withering look.
"Why don't you mind your own business. Maybe if you focused on your own performance instead of criticising others', you could actually be a good competitor."
Zorua's face turned red. She tried to respond with a biting comment, but simply sputtered stupidly, and she was quickly hit in the head by a dodgeball. Scrafty simply gave Umbreon a shrewd look, but continued moving.
Slowking finally hopped over the last hurdle, looking proud of himself. Shellder however, was not so pleased.
"We're way behind!" He hissed in Slowking's ear. "Hurry!"
"Oh yeah…..right," Slowking yawned, running in a slow jog, Dodgeballs shot at him, but he grabbed them whenever they got close with his mind, redirecting them. Despite his slow gait, his progress allowed him to move ahead of many of the still dodging competitors.
Ampharos tripped over a ball that hit his leg, and fell flat on his face. Bulbasaur accidentally slapped a ball away with a vine out of reflex, disqualifying him as well. Meanwhile Tepig scowled up at Whimsicott, who was floating high above the cannons.
"Can she do that?"
"There's no rule against it, porky!" Whimsicott stuck out taunted as she stuck out her tongue playfully. Tepig simply shrugged his shoulders.
"Oi Shuckle! How would ya feel about being shot out of a cannon again?"
"Screw you!"
Shuckle was way behind everyone else. He crawled very slowly forward, moving past the hurdle section into the dodgeballs. He didn't know HOW he managed to hop over those last hurdles.
He managed to stay low to the ground, below the cannon's line of fire. Slowly but surely, he made his way forwards.
Audino smiled at Eevee ahead of her, who had now seemed to have gotten a rhythm in avoiding those dodgeballs. She was happy for her.
Out of nowhere, Sableye shouted a battle cry, hopping on top of Audino's head.
"I NEED MORE SCREEN TIME! RAHH!"
Audino screamed as she was caught completely off guard, being hit in the shoulder by a dodgeball in the process. Sableye flipped off of her, cackling madly.
"The rubies will all be mine once I win my dears!" But it wasn't long before the cannons targeted him, pelting the poor darkness Pokemon again and again.
"Ah! Shit! Hell! DAMMIT!"
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Audino looked shocked. "What in the world!?"
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Sableye stumbled around in the confessional. "I reign…..supreme." He giggled, before collapsing.
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Ultimately it was Ninjask who got to the other side first, winking at a scowling Victini at the other side.
"Why is it always you?" Victini complained. Ninjask shrugged.
"Guess I'm just that good."
"Yeah well...flying won't help you in this part of the challenge! Enter. Mount. VICTORY!"
Ninjask stared at the high mountain ahead of him, its peaks reaching the clouds. "Uh….and what the hell am I supposed to do with this mountain?"
"Scale it, genius. Oh and no using wings. At ALL. If you don't climb, you get disqualified."
Ninjask muttered something under his breath, but dug his claws into the mountain, slowly climbing. It wasn't long before Infernape caught up, moving quickly up the mountain and easily passing the cicada.
"Woohoo! This easier than that time I kidnapped that girl, and climbed to the top of that really tall building. And there were airplanes and-AH!"
The area of mountain he was climbing on exploded, blasting the poor monkey off the mountain and sending him tumbling down to where Victini was standing.
"What the hell?" Misdreavus gasped, arriving with Lopunny.
"Oh yeah, we had some extra mines from the last challenge, so….."
"Well I can't climb anyway so good luck Lopunny!" Misdreavus winked. Lopunny huffed, but began to climb nonetheless.
"Oh and there are more than just mines up there! Watch out for oil slicks, mines, and lasers!"
"What was that last one?" Lopunny called from further up. Victini merely chuckled.
"Oh you'll see."
More and more competitors finished the cannon section, beginning their next part of the challenge. Frogadier and Plusle both began climbing immediately, but others were facing….other issues.
Eevee gave one look at the huge mountain and immediately curled into fetal position, rocking back and forth. Braixen's eyes got wide.
"Yeah….I'm not climbing that."
"Like hell you aren't!" Grumbled Scrafty as he moved next to her. "You aren't quitting now."
"It's called acrophobia. Look into it, asshole." Braixen said as she folded her arms.
"I don't care WHAT it's called!" Scrafty hissed, stamping out his cigarette. "If you actually value this team, you'll put aside your fears for this challenge!"
"Oh stop fightin' ya bogans. You both sound like me parents when they tried to abort me." He spat on his hands, beginning his ascent.
"As obnoxious as his wording was, he had a point." Said Grovyle, shrugging her shoulders. "If she's too afraid to climb, don't argue with her. It won't help, and its about as useless as…."
"AS TITS ON A TAUROS!" Tepig called down.
"That yeah." Grovyle groaned, starting to climb as well. Behind her back, Braixen stuck out her tongue at Scrafty, who simply scoffed and hopped up on a ledge.
Umbreon sighed at Eevee, who gave her an apologetic look. Slowking pulled himself up, using his psychic powers to support him. Minccino did the same with much more struggle, and Lucario jumped from ledge to ledge. Shuckle still hadn't finished the dodgeball section.
But it wasn't easy for the climbing competitors. Explosions triggered all around, succeeding in taking out Plusle. Minccino and Ninjask both didn't have the upper body strength to continue, and dropped down.
Some campers did better than others. Slowking used his psychic powers to sense the positions of certain traps, while Lopunny's sensitive ears served her well.
"Ha! Looks I'm in the lead!" Lopunny crowed. Below her. the Zany Zangoose's groaned. Would they lose AGAIN?
"Uh Lopunny? What the hell are you going on about? You are only in second place…." Victini told her, floating suddenly in front of her, almost lazily.
"How….who could possibly?"
"Gallade. He's almost at the top by now," Said Victini, looking uninterested as he scratched a nail.
Lopunny looked up in horror at Gallade, who was far ahead of her, stabbing the rocks with his blades to get a better grip.
"He didn't stop when the rest of you did. Well, good luck!" Victini waved cheerfully as he teleported away.
"Ugh. Typical." Lopunny moaned.
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"No…" Groaned Zorua, staring at the mountain with a pair of binoculars. At this rate, Gallade was going to…..
"We can't afford to lose this one!" Zorua cursed under her breath as she frantically ran to the cannons. Slowly she spun one around, aiming it for the mountain.
She glanced at Sableye, who had an ice pack to his head. "Hey! What would you say would be the right position for hitting for someone high on the mountain? Like say…..Gallade?"
Sableye blinked. "Well given the wind condition, I'd say you should aim it slightly to the left. Why are you asking?"
Zorua shrugged, but smiled cruelly. "Oh, no reason."
"Oh okay," Sableye stated as he walked away.
Zorua rolled her eyes, aiming the cannon. She lit the match and covered her ears as she fired it.
"Nothing like a bit of sabotage to pick you up after being pelted by dodgeballs," She cackled loudly.
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Gallade sighed to himself. He was almost at the top. He sensed the challenge would be over soon.
Out of nowhere, a dodgeball struck him in the skull, and he toppled off the mountain.
"Crap! He's unconscious and that's REALLY high up!" Exclaimed Lucario, worried.
"I got him!" Frogadier called, jumping from the wall and catching the knight Pokemon in his arms. He shot a hydro pump on the ground to slow the fall.
Frogadier landed in a roll, completely unharmed. Gallade groaned, rubbing his head.
"Oh my! Are you alright!?" Audino gasped. Gallade nodded dismissively.
"Thank….you," He pointed at Frogadier. The frog shrugged.
"Eh don't sweat it. It's what I do."
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The campers climbed higher and higher, but the higher they were, the more difficult the traps. Umbreon slipped on a strange, slippery substance that Victini must have rubbed on. She swore loudly as she fell. Lasers began shooting in every direction, and the campers moved around desperately to avoid them.
One blasted a hole through Whimsicott hair, and the poor grass type fainted out of fear as she screamed all the way down the mountain, landing on Scrafty and bringing him down with her.
But finally, Lopunny pulled herself to the top of the cliff, where Hariyama was waiting for her.
"Ugh. NOW what!" Lopunny growled in frustration. Hariyama raised his arms defensively.
"Hariyama reminds girl that Hariyama only works here." The chef muttered.
"Whatever. What's the next part of this dumb challenge?" Lopunny asked, annoyed.
"Cave entrance is right in front of us. Take partner and navigate it, yes? Mountain is abandoned mineshaft. Take minecart down to bottom and run for finish."
Lopunny nodded as Lucario finally hopped off the last ledge and onto the top.
"C'mon let's go!" Lopunny grabbed her by the arm and the two jumped in one of the minecarts, moving down the tracks.
Grovyle and Tepig both arrived at the same time. Quickly picking up on what they had to do, they began to descend the mountain as well.
Slowking arrived next, yawning and dusting himself off. "So….what am I supposed to do here?"
"Take a minecart and head down, quick!" Shellder shouted in his ear.
Hariyama folded his arms. "Young Slowking is last Seviper no? You must go by yourself."
Slowking hopped into the minecart surprisingly quickly, using his psychic powers to move it faster.
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"Whoa...this place is amazing," muttered Grovyle as she stared at the cavern walls.
"You like caves and patterns and dirt and all that?" Tepig asked. Shooting fire from his nose, he lit some of the torches ahead.
"Yes….I've actually always wanted to become an archeologist." Grovyle said almost wistfully, staring at a strange picture of what seemed to be an Aurorus.
"But….I thought you were into plants and trees and the like?" Tepig arched a brow. They took a turn in the minecart, picking up speech.
"I love ALL nature. Even the parts that aren't with us anymore," She said lowly.
"Nice dream. Y'know what I love?"
"Is it money and w-?"
"It's money and woman. So in my personal opinion, we should get this challenge over with so we aren't eliminated right away."
Grovyle sighed. "Fine." She looked disapointed.
"Hey! Don't be like that, sheila. After this we'll have a right good conversation about rocks or whatever, ya hear?"
Grovyle rolled her eyes, but smiled slightly. "If you insist."
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"Hey Lucario? Can you do that aura sensing power you have? It's so dark that I can't see anything."
Lucario rolled her eyes. "It's not that simple, Lopunny. I can't use aura to "see" anything. But if I find some of the other competitors, maybe I can get an idea."
She focused for a moment, closing her eyes. Suddenly, they shot open.
"Tepig and Grovyle! We're closing in on them!"
They shot into a room, one that was lit. Tepig whirled around. "Uh-oh."
Lucario and Lopunny were right behind them. Tepig swore loudly. He and Grovyle wouldn't be able to match their speed in a footrace to the finish.
"Oi! Grovyle! We got a problem!"
Grovyle glanced back, her eyes widening in shock. Lucario charged up an aura sphere.
They soon came to an intersection in the tracks, controlled by a small lever. One set led to a bright light ahead, while the other led to a dead end.
Tepig, thinking quickly, leaned over the side of the minecart, switching the lever just as he and Grovyle passed it. The tracks shifted. Tepig and Grovyle continued towards the bright light, but Lucario and Lopunny were switched to the other side. The two screamed as the tracks led to the edge of a ledge, throwing them and the minecraft off and into the water below….
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Hariyama sighed, rubbing his shoulder. He supposed it was time to head for the finish line to witness the end of the challenge. But his thoughts were interrupted by a grunt.
Shuckle finally pulled himself to the top of the mountain, breathing heavily. Hariyama stared at him in surprise.
"You are still in….? The others are so far ahead!"
"I noticed!" Shuckle gasped. "Are there any minecarts left?"
"No….young Slowking took the last."
"Welp, I guess I'd better walk down it by myself," Shuckle shrugged, slowly moving down into the cave.
"Are you….sure you do not want to….give up?" Hariyama asked incredulously.
"I can't. I have to do whatever I can to avoid getting eliminated. And hey, slow and steady wins the race, right?" Shuckle sighed, moving very slowly down into the depths of the cave….
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Slowking focused his powers on speeding the minecart along. The tracks were quite erratic and twisting, meaning that there was no clear path. But thanks to Shellder's help and his psychic powers, he managed to navigate it somewhat easily. A smile formed on his face when he saw the bright light that meant the exit to the cave was near. But his smile was wiped off when he noticed another Minecart quickly catching up on another track.
Tepig tipped his fedora. "G'day Mate. Time to end this race."
Grovyle fired a bullet seed from her mouth, but Slowking used his psychic powers to redirect it. Frowning, he focused powers on the cave ceiling, sending a huge chunk of rock flying down.
"TEPIG WATCH OUT!" Grovyle shouted as she and Tepig tried to dive out of the minecart just as the rocks collided, sending dust and debris everywhere. Slowking shot off and far ahead, smirking as he left his competitors in his dust.
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Grovyle coughed on the ground, brushing herself off. "That was a dirty trick, right Tep-Tepig!"
The fire pig Pokemon groaned, his feet under the rubble. "I'm not getting out any time soon. You have to win this one."
"I can't just leave you here," Grovyle muttered hesitating.
"Oh I'll be fine. Just a scratch, really. But I don't want to lose this and be voted off, got it?"
"All right, all right," Grovyle sighed, sprinting off as fast as her feet could carry her.
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"Tepig….isn't such a bad guy actually," Muttered Grovyle. "He'll deny this, but when the rocks fell down on us, he pushed me out of the way." She giggled. "He's just a big softie."
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Slowking jumped off his minecart, running as fast he could (which wasn't very fast). Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Grovyle sprinting at a much higher speed, quickly overtaking him.
"Sorry, but I'm here to win," She taunted as she scanned in front of her. There was the finish line! Just a little closer…..
"I'm not finished yet," Slowking said as he stopped moving. He snapped his fingers, and the area surrounding him and Grovyle was now distorted and changed color. Slowking moved at speeds much faster than before.
"Welcome to the trick room. In this relm, the slower you are, the faster you become." Grovyle tried to run, but was struggling to even move. Slowking quickly ran past her, getting closer and closer to the finish.
The Striking Sevipers cheered at the sight of Slowking approaching. Minccino groaned.
Munchlax looked at Plusle. "I've been trying to say something for a while now….but I can never seem to get the message across. Do you-"
Bidoof suddenly crammed in between them cheering. "You got this Shuckle! Wooohoo!"
"God dammit…..wait. Shuckle?"
Slowking glanced behind him Something moved at incredible speed, faster than the eye could see. It shot out of the cave entrance, passing Grovyle, and then Slowking, who had almost arrived at the finish line.
Shuckle shot through, slamming into Hariyama and knocking him over.
"And Shuckle wins in an astonishing play!...Again," Victini cheered. "Which means that the Zany Zangoose win!"
"Of course…." Said Minccino in realization. "Slowking may be slow, but Shuckle is even slower! The trick room!"
The Sevipers glared at Slowking, who laughed sheepishly.
"Sorry."
Plusle and Bidoof carried Shuckle on their back, the rest of the team swarming around them.
"And that means….." Victini chuckled. "That you Sevipers have to pick someone to vote off. Have fun!"
The Seviper's stalked off, groaning and cursing Victini.
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"This one's gonna be rough," muttered Ampharos. "A LOT of us screwed up today."
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"Attention team!" Parasect clicked his claws impatiently. "Thanks to our stunning performance, I, the great Parasect, have built us a hot tub."
"That was me," Called Sableye lifting a hand.
"Regardless!" Parasect hissed. "I understand...I can be a tad…."
"OCD?" Asked Minccino.
"Control freak?" Asked Munchlax.
"A sociopath?" Tepig asked, grinning.
"I was going to say suppressing!" Parasect snarled. "So just….relax okay?"
The Zangooses cheered, making their way to the hot tub. Munchlax seemed to want to say something to Plusle, but changed his mind, sighing.
"Hey Parasect? Can we um, invite Pokemon from the other team?"
Parasect arched a brow.
"Like say….a ghost type that really likes pranks, is like...two feet tall. Name is rhymes with Mischievous?"
"No."
"C'mon man please?" Sableye pleaded.
"No."
"If I say please again, will you let me?"
"Maybe."
"Really?"
"No."
"Awww…."
Grovyle sighed. The team may have won, but it wasn't thanks to her. She really wasn't feeling up to partying at this time.
"Oi! Grovyle!"
She spun around, staring at Tepig, who gave her his signature grin.
"I think I owe ya a conversation about rocks?"
Grovyle smiled. "If you're that desperate to talk to someone."
0000
There was a tense feeling in the air for the Striking Sevipers. For the first time, no one felt safe.
"You guys seem to be the superior team, but after a clutch move from SHUCKLE of all people, you've lost."
"Just get on with it!" Snapped Charizard.
0000
"I vote Slowking. He really dropped the ball this time," Said Bulbasaur shortly.
0000
"The first Poffin goes to….Lucario."
Lucario breathed a sigh of relief, snatching the treat in her hands.
"Ampharos...Zorua...and Whimsicott…"
The three moved up, though Ampharos tripped and fell on a disgruntled Zorua.
"Infernape….Donphan…..Charizard."
Charizard breathed a sigh of relief. Thank goodness they weren't holding his lack of skill that challenge against him.
"Lopunny, Eevee, Audino and…..Misdreavus. You guys are safe."
Gliscor shuddered nervously, and while Slowking was snoozing, Shellder's eyes darted back and forth. Bulbasaur looked terrified, and Carbink looked irritated.
"You guys all racked up some votes. Bulbasaur and Carbink, you guys aren't the most useful around. Slowking is down here for the umpteenth time, and Gliscor? You seem to have gone from a dodging menace to a pain magnet."
There was a short pause, before Victini announced the next names. "Carbink and Bulbasaur, you guys are safe for another round."
Gliscor and Shellder stared at one another, anticipating the loser.
"Who will it be? Will Slowking's lucky streak finally end? Or will Gliscor's UNLUCKY streak continue? The final Poffin...goes to….."
Gliscor squeezed his eyes shut, as Slowking woke up with a snort.
"Slowking."
As Slowking caught the poffin with his mind, Gliscor sighed, looking down.
"I'll go get my things."
0000
"This has been coming on for a while now dude," Infernape said with a shrug. "I don't know what happened, but you've lost all the skills you once had. No hard feelings."
0000
"Losing my brightpowder really screwed me over," Muttered Gliscor. "Who would I pick to win? I don't know….Ninjask has always been pretty funny. I guess I'll have to find another. Man, this bites."
0000
The Zany Zangooses cheered as they partied in the hot tub. Though they had some issues when Plusle had shocked the water, they were having a good time.
"I'd like to call a toast to Shuckle, who won the challenge and never gave up!" Shouted Plusle.
"To Shuckle!"
"Aww...come on guys, you'll make me blush," Shuckle replied sheepishly.
Scrafty cracked his back, slowly moving out of the hot tub. Bidoof gave him a strange look. "Where are you going?"
"Just have to….deliver something before I turn in. Don't worry about it."
0000
Gliscor sighed as he leaned back. "Well...I guess it'll be nice to see my friends again."
He tried to get comfortable, but winced as he sat on something. When he got up to see what it was, he looked shock.
There was his brightpowder, and attached to it was a note.
No hard feelings!
-Scrafty
0000
AND THAT'S THE END. Whew, these have been getting harder and harder to write.
Gliscor goes home, because gimmicks can't last too long. Sorry buddy!
Fun Fact: Gliscor is based off of a Gliscor I used for fun once. It had the ability sand veil, which raises evasiveness in a sandstorm. I gave it the brightpowder, and he had a 35% chance to avoid all normally 100% accuracy attacks.
Until next time peeps!
